Slater puts Notts on top against Leicestershire

Rothesay County Championship, Division One, Uptonsteel Grace Road, Leicester (day one) Nottinghamshire 405-4: Slater 178, Clarke 80*, Duckett 77; Green 3-88 Leicestershire: Yet to bat Leicestershire 1pt, Nottinghamshire 4pts Match scorecard Opener Ben Slater led the way with a superb 178 as Nottinghamshire dominated the opening day of their County Championship meeting with East Midlands neighbours Leicestershire. Backed up by half-centuries from England's Ben Duckett (77) and Joe Clarke (80 not out), the 34-year-old left-hander hit 24 boundaries as his outstanding performance enabled the 2025 champions to close on 405-4. It was a chastening experience for Leicestershire, last season's Division Two champions, who had hoped their seamers might exploit what looked like a bowler-friendly pitch at Grace Road after winning the toss but, with the exception of Ben Green (3-88), were never able to impose themselves enough.

And they were forced to ask for an injury substitution in the final session, Tom Scriven coming in for Josh Davey after the latter limped off following an awkward fall in the field. The early signs were good for Leicestershire as a Davey inswinger deceived Haseeb Hameed in the opening over, the ball just missing off stump as the Nottinghamshire skipper offered no shot and in his opening over, Ian Holland then beat Slater twice. Thereafter, easy runs were offered in abundance.

Slater, whose cutting and driving were excellent all day, helped himself to eight boundaries in completing his third half-century of the season from 68 balls. But Green produced a good ball to find the edge as Hameed departed via an excellent catch by wicketkeeper Ben Cox but that was the sole wicket of the first session which ended with Notts on 120-1. The afternoon followed a similar pattern.

with both Slater and Duckett taking advantage, the latter punishing Holland with three crisp straight drives, one after the other. Green, only marginally more effective in containing him, was dispatched down the same route as Duckett's third consecutive 50 arrived from 52 balls. Slater lost a little of his momentum, spending a dozen overs working through the 90s and when his first hundred of the season arrived, it had been 15 overs since his 15th boundary.